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Thursday, March 31, 2011

Weekend Assignment #364: Ahead in the Clouds?
Suddenly the marketing departments of Microsoft and other tech giants are all about "the cloud" or "clouds," the practice of storing large files online and streaming them rather than everyone storing them locally on their hard drives. Do you think this is a good idea, a bad idea or both?

Extra Credit: Do you still buy CDs and DVDs?

You know how this works, right?

You have until next Wednesday night to answer this question in your blog or in the comments below.

If you do participate, please leave a comment here with your name and the URL of your entry.

Both Mr Rufai Garba, a manager for the Bank of Africa in Ouagadougou, and Dr Frank Lemon, also of the Bank of Africa, want me to act as next of kin for people I don’t know. Furthermore, the lovely Mrs Daisy Mercy and her late husband, who made a lot of money mining gold, would also like to leave me a large sum of money.

There was one time, at Noodles and Company, when I handed over my Visa to pay for lunch and it was declined. I called Chase to rip someone's head off and found that two hours earlier, someone tried to use my card to download music in Brazil. Had I tried to use my card to download music in Brazil?

Last week, a guy with a heavy Asian (India/Pakistan or something) accent call the land line here, claiming that "Your computer has a virus." Which computer? Mine? John's? The iPad? I didn't ask him that, though. "Go to your computer and let me show you," he said. Yeah, right.

Thanks also to Anne for some great ideas for future assignments. Have a great week, everyone!

To test your earthquake supply knowledge, I’ve made a small list of things you should and things you shouldn’t have. You decide which is which. We have them all. [The list starts with "A flat on the ninth floor."]

(Sandrine also left a great comment on my personal blog, scolding me for not being prepared for "an alien invasion" or "a zombie apocalypse.")

"What kind of disaster would have to occur for there to be no Internet in Chicago, Columbus or Washington, DC? (the latter cities being the alternate work sites under discussion)"
"A nuclear event," was the answer.

We are so unprepared for emergencies that I feel a little guilty as I admit to you the Awful Truth: our entire stash of emergency supplies consists of two cinnamon and nutmeg votive candles and two partially used boxes of matches. I was going to say that at least we have duct tape, but John corrected me. What we actually have is several rolls of clear plastic tape, suitable for mailing packages.

Please do the Assignment this week if you get a chance - and watch out for scammers!

Due to the paid work I've been doing all night (webmastering and newsletter editing), I'm unable to post the new Weekend Assignment tonight. Fear not, however: it will be posted on Friday evening this week, and will return to its usual Thursday night scheduling next week. Thanks for your patience.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

A number of recent events in the news have reminded us that life isn't always safe and predictable. I don't want to trivialize those events for a Weekend Assignment, but I will ask a related question:

Weekend Assignment #362: Emergency!

How prepared are you for emergency situations? Do you know how to do CPR? Does your home or business have an evacuation plan or do fire drills? Do you have a generator, duct tape, candles, first aid kit, fire extinguisher, sandbags or other emergency supplies on hand? Why or why not?

Extra Credit: Does your smoke detector (if you have one) have fresh batteries in it?

You know how this works, right?

You have until next Wednesday night to answer this question in your blog or in the comments below.

If you do participate, please leave a comment here with your name and the URL of your entry.

Don't forget to link back to here in the entry itself.

That's all there is to it!

Last week, for Weekend Assignment #361: Give It Up!, I asked what, if anything, you've ever abstained from for Lent or some other spiritual purpose. Click on the names below to read the responses:

Back in the day, I gave up French Fries every year for Lent. It was a good one for me because it was something that I enjoyed enough to make it a sacrifice, but not such a deprivation that I was twitching two weeks in - like those people that give up caffeine. I considered it participating in a tradition that many of my friends and colleagues valued, and it was good for my health.

One year, I gave up playing Mahjong on the computer for Lent. It was one of the games on a Disney Mulan software package, and I'd become quite addicted. Giving it up cold turkey was a really good thing to do. Did it bring me closer to God? I'm not sure, but I certainly don't regret my choice that year.

Friday, March 11, 2011

Weekend Assignment #361: Give It Up!Lent has begun, and in certain denominations, people are "giving up something for Lent" - in other words, not indulging in some pleasurable food or activity between now and Easter. Have you ever abstained from something for a period of time for a religious or spiritual purpose? What was it? How successful were you at avoiding it?

Extra Credit: Regardless of whether you believe in doing so, if you were to give up something you enjoy between now and April 24th, what would it be?

You know how this works, right?

1. Please post your response no later than than 12:01 AM on Thursday morning, March 10th, your local time. You can do this either in a blog entry of your own or in the comments section of the assignment entry. No submissions will be accepted after that time unless I want to.

2. Please mention the Weekend Assignment in your blog post, and include a link back to the original entry. Using one of the logos shown here is encouraged but not mandatory.

3. Please come back here after you've posted, and leave a link to your entry in the comments to the assignment. Don't forget, or I'll probably miss out on linking to you!

4. Visiting other participants' entries is strongly encouraged!

5. I'm always looking for topic ideas. Please see the "Teacher's Lounge" page for details. If I use your idea, you will be credited as that week's "guest professor." Help me out, folks, because sometimes I run dry when doing this week after week!

6. I reserve the right to remove rude or unpleasant comments (not to mention comment spam), and to leave entries off the linking list if the person has been rude or unpleasant, or fails to mention the Weekend Assignment in the entry.

Mr Bear was packed away in the huge shipping crate with most of the rest of our furniture for the six week trip to Australia. His return was delayed when the crate went missing for 10 months. It was very nearby in Port Melbourne all the time, within 40km of our final home. So I guess Mr Bear wasn't visiting relatives in Deepest Darkest Peru after all.

So I only have one toy left from childhood, And it’s not really form childhood, but a reminder of that childhood. It’s a troll, up in my daughter’s closet. He’s grey, furry, has bare arms and legs, and was made by my grandmother. He’s also one of the few things left of one of the best memories of my life.

I'm not sure Trophy was my favorite toy, but he's an integral part of my childhood. One time, a dog got hold of him and tore off part of one leg, but an aunt of mine sewed him back together. That was when I was staying with my dad's family in New Jersey. while my mom was in the hospital with polio-encephalitis. On later occasions I repaired him myself, restuffing him with tissues and I think Elmer's Glue.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Every year about this time, John and I go to a local toy show, hunting for childhood treasures. That's the inspiration for this week's Weekend Assignment:

Weekend Assignment #360: Toy Show Do you have any old toys or dolls from your childhood, either the originals or replacements purchased as an adult? If so, tell us about them.

Extra Credit: Is there a particular toy from your childhood that you especially remember as a favorite?

You know how this works, right?

1. Please post your response no later than than 12:01 AM on Thursday morning, March 10th, your local time. You can do this either in a blog entry of your own or in the comments section of the assignment entry. No submissions will be accepted after that time unless I want to.

2. Please mention the Weekend Assignment in your blog post, and include a link back to the original entry. Using one of the logos shown here is encouraged but not mandatory.

3. Please come back here after you've posted, and leave a link to your entry in the comments to the assignment. Don't forget, or I'll probably miss out on linking to you!

4. Visiting other participants' entries is strongly encouraged!

5. I'm always looking for topic ideas. Please see the "Teacher's Lounge" page for details. If I use your idea, you will be credited as that week's "guest professor." Help me out, folks, because sometimes I run dry when doing this week after week!

6. I reserve the right to remove rude or unpleasant comments (not to mention comment spam), and to leave entries off the linking list if the person has been rude or unpleasant, or fails to mention the Weekend Assignment in the entry.

For Weekend Assignment #358: Career Day 2, I asked what new career you'd be interested in trying, if age, money, etc were no obstacles. Please click on each person's name to see the full entry:

I have often said that I want to be the lady at the spa that brings you your ice water with lemon. Because everyone is in a good mood at the spa. And even if they weren't, who the heck yells at the ice water lady?.

Would I keep doing what I’m doing? As much as I enjoy some days, it’s not what I’d prefer to be doing. I can think of dozens of jobs I’d rather be doing. Or not doing ,in the case of my safe deposit job I used to have. If’ I’d been emotionally able to write then, I’d have finished a ten novel series by now.

When I took ten weeks of Business Law in the fall of 2003, I got all excited about it. I really loved learning about legal decisions and the reasoning behind them. Were it not for my age, money issues and the fact that I hate confrontations, I'd have switched to law school then and there.

About Me

Author of magazine articles, trading cards, and the Mâvarin novels. Intermittently seeking an agent and a publisher. Accountant, church webmaster, ex-fanzine editor. Married since 1979, one husband, no kids, two dogs, no cats.
Email is mavarin2 at gmail.com. Home is Casa Blocher, better known as The Museum of the Weird. Welcome!